


A World Without Color

by jaiah



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Color Blindness, Friendship, Love, M/M, Romance, Soulmates, non idols
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:35:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22079326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jaiah/pseuds/jaiah
Summary: Soulmate AU where you are color blind until you meet your soulmate.OrLee Jihoon works at a job he loves but doesn't get out much. What are the odds of him finding his soulmate? More likely than you would think.
Relationships: Choi Seungcheol | S.Coups/Lee Jihoon | Woozi, Choi Seungcheol | S.Coups/Yoon Jeonghan, Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi & Lee Jihoon | Woozi, Lee Jihoon | Woozi & Lee Seokmin | DK
Comments: 6
Kudos: 52





	A World Without Color

“Jihoon! You need to get up!” He should be used to it by now. 6:30 wasn’t even that early plus he does it five days a week. Sitting up and rubbing his eyes, he turns off the alarm. Luckily it was Friday, so just another day before two days of freedom. Grumbling, he rolls out of bed and stumbles to the door only to be hit in the face with a hand.  
“Sorry, I thought you hadn’t gotten up.” Jihoon opened his eyes to see Soonyoung giving him a sheepish smile. His dark hair stuck to his forehead, and he looked a little sweaty meaning he already went for his morning run.  
“It’s fine. I can’t believe you’ve already been awake for so long.” Jihoon says pushing past him into the bathroom. Sighing, he looked at himself in the mirror. Dark bags complimented his eyes from the lack of sleep, and his dark hair stuck out in all directions. Quickly he tamed his hair, washed his face, and brushed his teeth before dragging his body back to his room to pull on clean black jeans and long-sleeved grey button-up rolled at the elbows. He considered trying a non-monochrome color scheme, but he couldn’t tell what would look good so he strayed away from it. Grabbing his shoulder bag, he heads to the kitchen, sitting down at the breakfast bar.  
“You look good today!” Soonyoung chirped, a little too excitedly for 6:50 in the morning.  
“I’ve lived with you for 3 years, and I still don’t know how you are so energetic in the morning. Also, I look like this every day,” Jihoon responded reaching for the toast Soonyoung set in front of him.  
“Well it suits you, you look professional, and you know I just love mornings! You should be used to it by now. Anyways, Wonwoo, Chan, Hansol, and I are going to see that new horror movie tonight, so you’ll have the apartment to yourself unless you want to come?”  
“You know I hate horror, but I’ll be fine. I have some stuff I need to work on anyways.”  
“Ji, it’s Friday. Please don’t do work tonight. I know you probably don’t want to go out, but at least do something relaxing. You’ve been working so hard lately.” Soonyoung pleaded, pouting at his best friend.  
“Fine. Maybe I’ll take a nice bath and drink a glass of wine. I do have a new book I need to start.”  
“Perfect! That sounds like a great idea. You better not touch any work.”  
“Yes, mom,” Jihoon responding rolling his eyes, “okay, I gotta take off. I’ll see ya later.” Jihoon grabbed his bag before walking over to the door, picking up his black jacket, and putting on a pair of black dress shoes. Leaving the apartment, it was a cloudy day in Seoul, which isn’t anything new. He climbed into his black Honda Accord, starting up his driving playlist, and driving to work. Jihoon loved his job at Pledis Publishing Co. He had been working as an assistant editor for the past eight months, but every day was still as exciting and nerve-wracking as the first. He was lucky to land the job as only a 24-year-old, but he had interned for them in university. Jihoon loved coming into work even when things were crazy and stressful. Pulling up to the office, he noticed it was a rather quiet morning. Usually, the streets were bustling more, but hardly anyone was out. The air was crisp when he got out of the car, nothing too unusual for September. Fall was always Jihoon’s favorite season even if he couldn’t see the colors. Walking into the building, warm air hugged his body. He waved at the receptionist, Joshua, before making his way over to the elevators, shoes clicking against the tile floor.  
“Good morning Jihoon!” He turned to see Seokmin, one of his coworkers at the elevator. His hair was combed back as usual and eyes sparkled. He wore a light short-sleeved button-down under a black jacket and had a coffee in hand. The two had worked together since Jihoon started and Seokmin gave him an introduction. Even though Seokmin is younger than Jihoon, he was very good at his job and had shown him the ropes, and the two had been rather close.  
“Hey Seokmin, how’s it going?”  
“Oh, ya know, living the life. I’m almost done revising that romance novel I’ve been working on. I hope to have it done by today actually. I think it’s going to really well.” He explained as they hopped in the elevator headed up to the 17th floor.  
“That’s awesome, I can’t wait to read it. I’m about halfway with this fantasy novel which I’m really enjoying. I mean it’s only the first run through, but I’m pretty excited about it.”  
“That’s great. You’ve got any plans for the weekend? I hope you aren’t just going to edit this book, you workaholic.” He grinned at him as they walked out of the elevator and down the hall towards their office.  
“What is up with everyone saying that? Soonyoung told me I had to relax today because he’s going to that new horror movie with Wonwoo, Chan, and Hansol.” Jihoon says as he shrugs off his jacket and places it on his chair.  
“Well, you are notorious for working constantly. How about you come get drinks with me and Seungkwan tonight? It’s been ages since we’ve done it.” Seokmin asked sitting on the corner of his desk sipping at his coffee.  
“And watch you two get shit faced and force me into karaoke again? I’ll pass. I think I’m just going to have a me night. I have a new book I wanna start anyways.”  
“Fine, be that way. If you change your mind though, we’ll be over at 247. I know Mingyu and Junhui are working tonight, and I know they’d love to see you.”  
“I’ll think about it Seokmin, but for now, I need you to leave so I can work.” He says hitting him with a magazine on his desk. Seokmin rolls his eyes before heading over to his own desk. Jihoon pulls out his laptop and puts his glasses on. Light chatter and typing on keyboards filled the office but the sounds never hit his ears as he was absorbed in the writing. He was engulfed in every word, switching out parts and rearranging the orders for a better flow. It wasn’t until a magazine hit his desk that he came up for air. Looking up, he noticed Seokmin had taken up his favorite spot on the side of his desk.  
“And this is?” Jihoon asked referring to the magazine before returning to his screen.  
“It’s Soulmate Station. There's a really cute article about a guy from England finding his soulmate at the top of the Empire State Building.” He explains waving the magazine in his face.  
“I don’t understand how you read that trash. I don’t really care about them finding their soulmates. I mean good for them, but it doesn’t affect me.”  
“Oh come on, haven’t you ever wondered what it’s like to find your soulmate, to finally see in color? People talk about these blues and greens and purples, something you can’t explain but only see. Haven’t you ever wondered what it would be like to see the world outside of black?” Seokmin questions leaning closer. Jihoon looks up at him more serious than he’s ever seen.  
“Of course I have. I’ve always wanted to look at the ocean and see these colors that people talk about. I want to see flowers bloom in the spring. I want to know how I look to the people who have found their soulmates. The thing is though, I’m not dead set on it. Just because we see the world in black and white doesn’t mean it isn’t beautiful.”  
“Ah, always the poet. I guess you’re right. Anyways, don’t forget to eat lunch.” Seokmin reminded before leaving the desk. Jihoon shakes his head before going back to his work. Everyone hyped up finding your soulmate but finding them doesn’t mean happiness. He had seen that with his parents. Jihoon secretly hoped that his soulmate would love him, but he was terrified they wouldn’t. You can’t be too hurt if you don’t give them the power to hurt you, right? Jihoon knew he couldn’t focus, so he decided to get a coffee from the kitchen. As the machine brewed, Jihoon stared out the window. Different shades of grey covered the buildings, trees, and the sky. It never really bothered him to only see in black and white because it was all he knew, but he was also curious to see what color was. Sighing, he wiped his face in hopes to suppress those emotions and grabbed his coffee heading back to his desk. It wasn’t long before five o’clock hit and people started to move out.  
“You sure you don’t wanna come with?” Seokmin asked appearing at the end of his desk bag in tow.  
“I’m good. I’m just gonna finish this page and head home.”  
“Okay, I’ll save you a seat just in case.” He chuckled, winking before taking off. He turned back to his screen questioning if he should have gone with. More people were heading out, and it wasn’t until Jihoon was the last one in the office that he decided to head out. He shot Seokmin a text, telling him he was on his way. Socializing would be good considering he doesn’t do it often. Plus he hadn’t seen Seungkwan, Mingyu, or Junhui in weeks, and even if they get a little wild when they go out, he does love them. The sun was going down on the horizon as he finally left his desk. Leaving the elevator, he got a thumbs up from Seokmin. He smiled at his phone before putting it in his pocket. As Jihoon looked up into the lobby, vibrant colors started bleeding into his sight. Stopping in his tracks, he stared at the man in front of him. He was muscular, not crazy tall but taller than Jihoon with black hair and slightly light eyes. He didn’t know what color they were, but he had already fallen for them. They were warmer than the black he was used to seeing but not too far off. The man stared back at him, jaw slightly ajar. No one moved until the receptionist cleared his throat. Jihoon blinked, and the man turned back to the conversation they were having. He felt his hands shaking but decided to walk up to him anyway. If this man was supposed to be his other half, he should at least introduce himself. Why not give it a chance? He watched as he handed over a folder to the receptionist before turning towards his soulmate.  
“Hi, I’m Jihoon.” He introduced, hand outstretched.  
“I’m Seungcheol. Um, this is really weird. I definitely wasn’t expecting this.” His voice was a little unsteady as he rubbed the back of his neck in almost a guilty fashion.  
“Yeah, me neither. If it isn’t too sudden, can I buy you a drink? There's a bar just down the street.” Jihoon offered, and Seungcheol gave him a nod before they left the building. Nothing was out of place outside, but everything had changed. Colors danced across every object. The entire world looked absolutely stunning. He couldn’t identify any of the colors, but that didn’t matter. Were the trees blue or was that the sky? Whatever it was, he was in love. His heart felt lighter in a weird sense even though it was beating a mile a minute. Here he was, walking next to his soulmate after work in a world of color. It was more amazing than anyone could have ever described.  
“It’s crazy suddenly being able to see in color. I don’t even know how to take it all in.” Seungcheol observed and he smiled at Jihoon. His heart was fluttering already, and he knew nothing about Seungcheol. For the first time in a long time, he allowed warm feelings of hope into his heart.  
“It really is. I’m pretty overwhelmed if I’m being honest.” Jihoon admitted as they reached the bar. He held the door for him which made his heart beat faster. Sitting down at the counter, they ordered beers to calm their nerves.  
“Look, Jihoon, you seem nice, but I don’t want you to get the wrong idea,” Seungcheol started as he hugged his beer. Jihoon felt his heart drop as he stared at his profile but gave him a reassuring nod. Maybe he just was too overwhelmed to jump into a relationship which made sense because they only just met. It’s not like he wanted to marry him all of a sudden, “I’m in a relationship with my boyfriend of three years, and we’re really happy. I get that you’re my soulmate, and we’re supposed to be each other's other half, but I’m not going to break it off with him for you. I don’t even know you. I’m sorry if that makes me an asshole, but I love Jeonghan, and that isn’t going to change anytime soon. I would like to get to know you and be friends, but I totally understand if that is too much for you.” He finished looking in his eyes. The sad thing was that he looked apologetic for the way things were. How could he be mad at such a genuine guy? Jihoon broke their gaze to chug half his beer.  
“I get it. Being soulmates doesn’t define us. I don’t expect you to change any part of your life just for me. I don’t know where I stand right now, but I know I need time to sort this whole thing out. Thank you for at least explaining this to me.” Jihoon said looking ahead. He didn’t know why it stung as much as it did.  
“Here’s my number. Take your time, but I would love to get to know you if you are up to it. Take care Jihoon.” Then he was gone. Jihoon turned to see an empty beer and a business card. Choi Seungcheol, Graphic Designer. He tossed the card around in his hand before finishing his drink.  
“You need another drink?” Jihoon looked up at the bartender whose name tag said Minghao. Jihoon nodded then texted Seokmin that he wouldn’t make it.  
“This one’s on the house,” Minghao said placing another beer in front of Jihoon. He gave a small smile before going to assist with other customers.  
The light outside disappeared while the number of clients rose. Jihoon stared at the card over his fourth drink. The stool next to his screeched across the floor, but he paid no mind.  
“You okay? Your text seemed tense.” Seokmin asked ordering a drink.  
“I met my soulmate.” He replied, lifting the beer to his lips. Setting it down, he felt arms around his, and he melted into him. Everyone talked about how they wanted to meet their soulmate and see the world as it truly is. Jihoon wished he could go back because every color reminded him of what he doesn’t have. A world without color was less painful.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic, so I hope you enjoy it! Please let me know what you think!


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